Cryptology Mystery Cache
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This cache involves cryptography, steganography, subterfuge, and bold outright lies. And oh yes: hiking. In this cache you will find only one truth which can be relied upon: in any secure cryptosystem, all secrecy resides in the key.
There is only one absolutely perfectly secure crypto system: the one-time pad.
The 33 character cipher text below will tell you where to find the cache. It has been encrypted using a randomly generated one-time pad. In order to decrypt it, you need to find the key.
XCOOA HFEEN YBYEZ UTXLQ CXSHR VXCFU DWV
Many lesser cryptography caches rely on security through obscurity. That is, the secrecy lies in knowing which cryptosystem was used to turn cleartext into ciphertext. In order to make the message secure, you have to assume that the enemy knows which cryptosystem is being used, and hence we come back around to Kerckhoffs’s principle: ALL SECRECY MUST RESIDE IN THE KEY!
I hinted at the top that there was steganography involved in this cache. Below is a silly picture of a cat:
Since all secrecy resides in the key, there is no point in obscuring any information about the cryptosystem. Decrypting a one-time pad is a laughably simple. Here is a link to a web site that will allow you to decrypt the ciphertext above.
You will find that there is a small amount of range and bearing projection math involved in solving this puzzle. Since I don’t believe in making people trudge through the woods only to discover that their solution was 150 feet off due to a rounding error, I have included a geochecker link which will accept answers within 50 feet. I think you’ll find based on the ground zero location that the hide is pretty obvious and more accuracy is not needed.
You can check your answers for this puzzle on GeoChecker.com.
The weakest link in the chain of any cryptosystem are the humans that protect the key. Secure cryptosystems are subject to rubber-hose cryptanalysis. You can try this technique, though I’m pretty sure I’d put up a good fight, and in any case you’d have to find me! If you need a nudge, ask another cacher that has made the find. If it hasn’t been found yet, you’re just going to have to work a little harder.
So what is real...and what is a ruse? You’ll just have to go on a journey to find out.
ALL SECRECY MUST RESIDE IN THE KEY!
Additional Hints
(Decrypt)
VA BEQRE GB BOGNVA GUR SVANY PBBEQVANGRF, LBH ZHFG YBPNGR GUR XRL.
Treasures
You'll collect a digital Treasure from one of these collections when you find and log this geocache:
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